USDA report: Americans eat healthier at home, then indulge elsewhere
Americans are more likely to bare their sweet tooth at the restaurant or take-out stand while controlling it at home, say two researchers who looked at the ability of dietary advice to counter the “indulgence effect.” As they gain knowledge about healthful diets, people buy healthier foods …
FDA commissioner announces sweeping nutrition plan
Scott Gottlieb, commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, announced a multiyear nutrition strategy Thursday that pursues many Obama-era nutrition goals.
Strong public support for menu labeling and Nutrition Facts
Four out of five Americans support the federal requirement that chain restaurants list calorie counts on their menus. An even larger majority — 87 percent — say the Nutrition Facts label is useful, said the consumer group Center for Science in the Public Interest.
House passes ‘pizza exemption’ from menu-labeling law
On a mostly party-line vote, the House passed a bill that exempts restaurant chains from the menu-labeling law if at least 50 percent of their sales are made off-premises. The bill was then sent to the Senate. Critics such as the consumer group Center for Science in the Public Interest, said the legislation, titled the Common Sense Nutrition Disclosure Act, is a favor to the pizza industry, the leading advocate for the bill.
New York City waits while FDA aims for menu labeling next year
FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb says the agency "will provide additional, practical guidance" to food retailers by the end of the year so they will be ready to comply with menu-labeling rules when they take effect, which is now scheduled for May 2018. The FDA announced it was going forward with the May 2018 target at the same time New York City agreed in court not to enforce its own labeling law until next May.
Former FDA official is named as leader of CSPI
A veteran consumer advocate and public health official, Dr. Peter Lurie, a physician by training, is the new executive director and president of the consumer group Center for Science in the Public Interest. Lurie will succeed Michael Jacobson, a co-founder of CSPI in 1971, said the watchdog group, which is suing the FDA over its delay of menu labeling.
Consumer groups sue FDA to put calorie counts on menus
Last month, the FDA gave restaurants, fast food companies and convenience stores an additional year, until May 2018, to include on their menus the caloric content of the food and beverages that they sell. Now, the decision is being challenged in U.S. district court by two consumer groups who say the agency is "randomly sowing chaos" with its delay of useful information.
Senate confirms Trump nominee Gottlieb as FDA commissioner
Scott Gottlieb, a deputy FDA commissioner during the George W. Bush era, will assume the top job in the agency following a 57-42 confirmation vote in the Senate that broke mostly along party lines. Republicans, who provided all but six six of the votes for Gottlieb, said the physician and political conservative will bring the steady hand of experience to an agency with responsibilities ranging from testing medical devices to assuring the safety of a large part of the U.S. food supply.
FDA asks for longer compliance period for menu labeling
Days before menu-labeling regulations were to take effect, the Food and Drug Administration filed an interim final rule for White House review that would allow the food industry more time to comply with the regulations. The brief notice posted by the White House budget office, which acts as …
Groceries and convenience stores ask FDA for delay in menu-labeling rule
Trade groups for grocers and convenience store operators made a list-minute request to the FDA to delay the menu-labeling requirement due to take effect on May 5.